The present invention relates to a pad printing machine with a holder for a printing plate, an ink supply device having a hollow body, wherein the hollow body rests with its front face on the printing plate during operation of the machine, a device for generating and relative movement between the printing plate and the hollow body, and a pad which can be pressed onto the inked printing plate and which takes up the ink from the recesses of the printing plate and transfers the ink to an object to be printed, wherein the drive assembly for the relative movement between the hollow body and the printing plate has a rotatably driven first cam and the drive assembly for the pad has a rotatably driven second cam.
In one conventional pad printing machine, the printing plate and the pad are driven by two separate levers operating on control discs, which generates play resulting in inaccurate prints. In another conventional pad printing machine, the pad is moved vertically by a guide member from an upper end position to a lower end position and back, wherein in the lower end position the pad is pressed onto the printing plate. The printing plate is simultaneously moved back and forth horizontally by a piston-cylinder unit, wherein the printing plate is inked in the first end position and the ink is lifted from the printing plate by the pad in the other end position. Both these pad printing machines have only a limited printing speed.
It would therefore be desirable and advantageous to address this problem and to obviate other prior art shortcomings by providing a pad printing machine which enables a higher printing speed.